


Free Fallin’ Into You

by Baejoo



Category: Warrior Nun (TV)
Genre: Ava falling in love with Beatrice, Ava is a lovable idiot, Avatrice, F/F, Fluff, soft gfs
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-08
Updated: 2020-08-08
Packaged: 2021-03-06 05:13:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,382
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25787887
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Baejoo/pseuds/Baejoo
Summary: Stages of Falling ft. Ava and BeatriceOr, Ava gets to know Beatrice and she falls in love (Because of course she does)
Relationships: Sister Beatrice/Ava Silva
Comments: 36
Kudos: 621





	Free Fallin’ Into You

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! This has been sitting in my drafts for about 2 weeks now. I get restless when I have unfinished fics sitting around. I bring you Ava falling in love and figuring out her feelings for Beatrice. It kinda got messy in the end because my ideas kind of escaped me but oh well. 
> 
> Enjoy and have fun!

**< 1>**

Ava’s first impression of Beatrice is cold. 

It’s not necessarily a bad thing. She isn’t outright mean or hostile like some of the nuns have been to her since she arrived. Beatrice is receptive enough to Ava’s attempts of conversation. She is straightforward with Ava, not cloaking her words with fake kindness or sweetness. Beatrice is almost nice, if not a bit aloof— only talking to Ava when Ava talked to her first— hence,  _ cold _ . 

Which is why Ava is so surprised that when she touched Beatrice for the first time, all Ava could feel is  _ warmth _ .

Mother Superion’s words felt like tendrils of ice creeping inside her until they reached her heart, gripping tightly and making it difficult for Ava to breathe. All the implications and the accusations were simply too much for Ava. For her loss, her condition, and her grief to be used against her— it all simply hurt too much. All of it made her feel cold and alone and numb, too close and similar to what she was in the orphanage. So when she felt a warm hand rest on her shoulder, Ava allowed herself to gravitate to the source. 

The source being Beatrice. 

Beatrice is warm, Ava realizes, as she clings to the nun tightly. She reminds Ava of the winter days she spent with her mother when she was young, when they would sit by the fireplace and drink hot chocolate in their colorful mugs. It takes a few seconds but Ava feels Beatrice’s hand settle on her back. And as she presses her face against Beatrice’s shoulder, Ava feels Beatrice’s warmth spread all over her body, feels the coldness from the harsh words earlier being chased away.

To be able to feel the skin of Beatrice’s jaw flushed against her cheek, to be able to feel the rise and fall of her chest as she breathes, to be able to feel the gentle caress of her hand against Ava’s back— all of the sensations seem new and familiar all at the same time, and Ava  _ revels _ . 

It takes several more minutes but eventually, Ava pulls away. She is still hurt and confused, but she is no longer numb and cold. 

Later, when Beatrice finds her and calls her thoughtless and selfish but honest, when Beatrice talks about herself in an attempt to connect with Ava, Ava admits to herself that she was wrong. 

Beatrice may be guarded, but she is not cold. Not at all. 

  
  


**< 2>**

  
  


Another thing that Ava learns is that Beatrice is a  _ badass _ . 

It’s hot.  _ Extremely hot, _ if Ava is being honest and exact. 

Beatrice had arrived so suddenly, blocking the nunchuck Sister What’s-her-face is about to bring down on Mary. It’s a different kind of Beatrice, one that Ava has not seen before and one that she hopes to see more of. It’s unusual to see Beatrice in anything other than her Habit and Ava has to admit that civilian clothing looks so damn good on Beatrice.

Ava watches with rapt attention as Beatrice predicts Sister What’s-her-face’s moves perfectly before proceeding to kick some satanic nun ass. It’s fascinating, Ava thinks, how Beatrice can be this mix of grace and power all at once. She looks gentle and lethal all at once. More than fascinating, it’s actually rather beautiful. 

_ Beatrice _ is beautiful. 

So when Ava sees Sister What’s-her-face grab one of Mary’s shotguns and aim it at Beatrice, Ava reacts on pure instinct. She cannot let some weirdly demonic nun destroy something-- someone-- as beautiful. She feels the halo on her back heat up and it gives her the push she needs to surge forward. But the Halo seems to have other plans-- it gives off a mini explosion that blows back What’s-her-face and the next thing Ava feels is her body hitting the hard floor. 

When she tries to get up and finds herself incapable of doing so, Ava begins to panic but she feels familiar warmth slide into her hand and Ava breathes. Breathes because she’s not paralyzed again, breathes because gentle Beatrice is beside her, pulling her up and holding onto her tightly. They stumble out of the room and into the main hall of the convent and when she sees all the other nuns stand before them, Ava resolves that if Beatrice can be a badass, then maybe she could be too. 

But maybe she is destined to be the dumbest of all Warrior Nuns because before she could finish her badass speech, she gets shot in her chest and suddenly Beatrice is beside her again, catching her and pulling the wretched arrow out of her chest. 

As they make their way out of the convent, Ava is vaguely aware of Camila going trigger happy on the other nuns (which also,  _ what the fuck? _ Even Camila is more badass than her?) and Mary practically dragging her along. 

Mostly though, Ava’s attention is on Beatrice and on the way her low voice sounds so comforting as she whispers to Ava over and over again, “It’s okay, Ava, you’re okay. Just hang on, we’re almost there. You’re okay, Ava. Just breathe, please.  _ Breathe _ .” Ava tries her best to nod and breathe in time with the syllables of Beatrice’s words. 

Somehow they manage to escape and Ava is thrown onto the floor of a van. She starts feeling lightheaded, her vision turning fuzzy and blurry, and she almost doesn’t notice it when hands start to put pressure on her gaping wound. But she does see Camila and Beatrice fussing over her, sees the way Beatrice’s eyebrows are scrunched together and Ava feels the desire to reach up and straighten them, to tell Beatrice that she is doing her best and that’s more than enough for Ava. 

Ava tries to reach up but she is too weak and her limbs are refusing to coordinate properly so the only thing she could do was to touch Beatrice’s hand and somehow, Beatrice takes notice of it and seems to understand what Ava is trying to do and say. Ava feels Beatrice press down more firmly on her chest as their eyes meet. 

Beatrice nods encouragingly at her, a hint of a smile on her lips as she says, “You’re gonna be okay.”

Ava briefly wonders how Beatrice’s words, as simple as they are, can give her so much assurance. It’s then that Ava knows that she can trust Beatrice. That if Beatrice says she will be okay, then she  _ will _ be okay. 

It feels good, Ava thinks, to have someone she can trust. She doesn’t stop the smile that appears on her lips as she watches Beatrice quietly fuss over her. She knows she probably looks weird and silly, smiling dopily with blood still kind of dripping down her probably broken nose but it’s fine, Ava decides. She’s beginning to be fine with a lot of things that are happening in her life now. She knows she should probably take this time to close her eyes and get some much needed rest but she’d much rather just keep her gaze on Beatrice. 

If she were to die, she wouldn’t mind it so much if Beatrice is the last person she sees. But she  _ is  _ happy she isn’t dying right now. 

  
  


**< 3>**

Ava is confused. 

Granted, she is confused most of the time, but right now she is confused for an entirely different reason. Right now, she is confused because of Beatrice. 

Recently, Beatrice is... different. Or maybe it’s Ava who is different. Either way, this  _ thing  _ between them has become different. Not that Ava is saying she and Beatrice have a thing, or that Beatrice has a thing for Ava, or that Ava has a thing for Beatrice. Not that it would be weird if Ava has a thing for Beatrice because really anyone with eyes probably has a thing for Beatrice and—  _ Okay.  _

The point is that their relationship somehow changed and it has caused Ava to see Beatrice differently. 

It’s not bad, really. It’s just that lately Ava always finds herself seeking out Beatrice. Training doesn’t stop now that they’re in ArqTech and Ava often finds herself working extra hard and pushing herself more just to see the proud smile on Beatrice’s face. And even after spending the entire morning training together, Ava still follows Beatrice around in the afternoons, humoring the nun’s many, many questions about the halo. Their relationship has shifted from being casual friends to something closer. Close enough that Beatrice does not question her anymore when she follows the nun around. Close enough that when she’s feeling overwhelmed by the reminders of her sudden responsibilities, she gets the urge to run to Beatrice instead of away. Close enough that they always seem to know where the other is. 

So they’re closer and things are different and they’re both different. 

And if there is anyone to blame for Ava’s confusion, then that would be Camila. She is the only reason Ava even started noticing all these things anyway.

Ava just finished showering and she enters the kitchen to grab something to eat when she’s met by Camila. Ava grins at the nun and is about to invite her to eat together when Camila beats her to speaking. 

“Beatrice is not here.” Camila says with a small smile. 

Ava frowns at her in confusion, “Um, okay?”

Camila shrugs. “She isn’t here. Maybe try her room?”

“Uh, no, she won’t be there either. She said she’ll be out on some errands today.” Ava clarifies as she makes herself a sandwich, still weirded out by Camila’s statements. 

“Oh,” Camila smiles again. “Okay. I thought you might be looking for her.”

“Why would you think that?”

“Well, you’re always looking for Bea.” Camila says matter-of-factly. “And if you aren’t looking for her, it usually means you’re already with her.”

Ava stops chewing. “That’s not true.”

“Oh, but it is.” Camila says with a giggle. “And it’s kind of cute, if you ask me.”

“... What is?” Ava asks, though she isn’t really sure she wants to know the answer, based on Camila’s growing smile. 

“Your crush on Bea.”

Ava chokes on her sandwich and Camila laughs out loud even as she moves to Ava to rub her back. 

Ava tries to fight off the blush she’s pretty sure is on her face already and she stutters, “I-I don’t have a-- It’s not a-- You’re just-- Bea is just--”

“Aw, you can’t even lie about it, Ava! That is just  _ adorable _ .” Camila gushes.

Okay so maybe she has a very minor, tiny, little crush on Beatrice. Can anyone really blame her? Beatrice is gorgeous and nice and kind and patient and not to mention she smells good. So what if Ava has an apparently not-so-hidden tiny, little crush? What of it? It’s not her fault she knows how to appreciate a fine woman when she recognizes one. 

“Um, does Bea know?” Ava asks meekly.

Camila shrugs, “I don’t know. But she hasn’t noticed it yet that she’s pretty much the same so most probably she doesn’t know.”

Ava gapes at Camila. “What? Beatrice is  _ what _ ?”

Camila stares quietly at Ava for a second before a knowing expression crosses her face. “ _ Oh _ . I see. You have to pay more attention, Ava. Look at Bea.  _ Really _ look at her, okay? You might be surprised by what you see.”

Ava wants to ask more-- like what the fuck is Camila on?-- but Camila waves at her and leaves her with too big of a grin than Ava thinks is appropriate. 

And so Ava looks at Beatrice--  _ really  _ looks at her like how Camila told her to do so

And it does surprise her because Beatrice is different when she’s with Ava compared to when she’s with the others. How could Ava miss that? How could she miss how Beatrice seems to laugh a lot during their training sessions? And how while Beatrice is patient with Camila, she is imperturbable when it comes to Ava. And how Beatrice seems to always be not busy when Ava wants her attention. Most importantly, how could Ava miss that yeah, while she does tend to seek out Beatrice, most of the time, Beatrice is already on her way to Ava too? 

Which brings everything back to the very annoying fact that Ava is just so confused now. Because why is Beatrice doing those things? Why is Beatrice different with her? 

But there are always more pressing matters than her emotional crises and quest for clarity like Lilith’s arrival (revival? resurrection?) and things get busy again and Ava suddenly finds her confusion temporarily overpowered by anger when Beatrice opens up to her after they read an entry from the Warrior Nun journal. 

It pains her to see Beatrice cry because of what she has had to endure. She knows a thing or two about being treated badly because of something one cannot control and she hates that Beatrice-- gentle and kind Beatrice-- had to experience it in the hands of her own family. Seeing tears roll down Beatrice’s cheeks make Ava feel a multitude of feelings. It makes her feel a suffocating heartache. It makes her feel hot, boiling anger. It makes her feel an urge to cut down those who dared to punish and hurt Beatrice. But more than those feelings, Ava feels  _ proud _ . She feels proud that despite the world letting her down, Beatrice still turned out to be so kind and full of light and just beautiful. 

And Ava needs Beatrice to know just that. So she tells her. 

“Don’t hate what you are. What you are is beautiful.” She tells her so because she needs Beatrice to understand that she is beautiful, so beautiful. Everything about her is beautiful, even the things she was taught to be her flaws. 

A small smile graces Beatrice’s lips, so small that it’s barely there but it is there and Ava feels her chest lighten at the sight of it. 

Clarity arrives later that day. 

Clarity feels like familiar warmth and a breath of fresh air in her lungs. Clarity sounds like a vow of never leaving her side. Clarity comes fully in the form of Beatrice catching her as she falls out of a block of cement. 

Beatrice cradles Ava’s face like she is the most precious thing Beatrice has ever held on to and it enchants Ava. It enchants her how Beatrice is looking at her with so much pride and joy and tenderness, and how Beatrice is the first person to ever do that to Ava, and how Beatrice is the first person to make Ava feel like this, and-- Oh.  _ Oh _ . 

Ava takes a sharp breath as she watches Beatrice’s eyes stare at her lips for a good few seconds before the nun is clearing her throat and letting go of Ava’s face to fumble with the previously forgotten tablet. 

_ Oh _ , Ava thinks as a satisfying feeling of peace settles in her chest upon her realization,  _ I might be falling for Beatrice. _

  
  


**< 2>**

  
  


The night before their planned stint in the Vatican, Ava finds herself loitering outside Beatrice’s room. 

She doesn’t really know why she’s outside Beatrice’s room. One minute she was just having some sort of mini existential crisis over their plan and the next thing she knew she’s pacing back and forth outside Beatrice’s room, contemplating whether she should knock or not. 

She’s been pacing for about 10 minutes already and just as she decides she should not disturb Beatrice or be creepy outside her door, Ava hears a soft call. 

“Ava?”

Ava freezes. “Um, hey, Bea. What’s, uh, what’s up?”

The faint sound of Beatrice’s laugh echoes from the other side of the door. “I don’t know, Ava, you tell me. Is there anything interesting out there?”

“Um, nope.” Ava says slowly with a popping sound at the end. 

The door opens and Beatrice’s head peeks out of the small space. She smiles teasingly (another thing she only seems to ever do with Ava), “Okay then, would you like to come in or would you prefer talking through the door?”

Ava flushes in embarrassment. “Um, inside, please. If it’s okay. May I?”

Beatrice’s smile turns soft as she opens the door wider. “Of course, Ava.”

They settle on the bed, both of them sitting against the headboard. They sit in silence for a while and Ava is grateful that Beatrice doesn’t ask, doesn’t push. It’s one of the things she appreciates most about Beatrice. She appreciates how Beatrice never rushes her, how Beatrice is always willing to wait for her to be ready on her own. 

“How are you feeling about tomorrow?” Ava finally asks after a while. 

“Ready.” Beatrice says with a firm nod. “We prepared well.”

It figures that Beatrice feels the way she does, being a super ninja nun and all. Ava swallows and tries to nod nonchalantly. “Yep, true, same, me too, I feel ready. Totally ready.”

“Ava,” Beatrice says in the gentle admonishing tone she uses from when they first met and it makes Ava turn to look at her to see the small frown on Beatrice’s face. “Don’t do that.”

Ava blinks. “What?”

“Don’t do that. Covering up what you’re feeling like that.” Beatrice says in a determined tone as she meets Ava’s gaze squarely. “You don’t have to do that. Not with me.” Her tone is fierce, fiercer than Ava has ever heard her to be, as if it’s crucial that she makes Ava understand her point. “Never with me.”

“Bea…”

“You can always be honest with me, Ava.” Beatrice continues, her voice back to its usual gentle tone. “You can tell me anything and I’d still be here.”

“Yeah?” Ava whispers shakily due to the sudden wave of emotions brought on by the utterly soft and gentle way Beatrice is looking at her.

“Of course. I told you, didn’t I? I will  _ never  _ leave you.”

Beatrice did, but the way she is saying it now is different. It’s different because Beatrice said ‘I’ instead of ‘we’ and Ava knows in her poor, poor, wildly beating heart that Beatrice means it, means everything she is saying to Ava and Ava just wants to  _ weep _ . 

“I’m scared.” Ava whispers instead, deciding that she doesn’t want Beatrice to see her again with snot dripping from her nose like that one time long ago. She wiggles gracelessly until she’s laying on her back, eyes trained on the ceiling. She heaves out a sigh before continuing, “I’m scared that my plan is stupid and I’ll lead all of you to your deaths tomorrow.”

Beatrice nods thoughtfully and takes a few seconds before responding. “It’s okay to be scared. It means you have things you care about, things you don’t want to lose.”

Ava looks at Beatrice and waits for Beatrice to meet her gaze. When she does, Ava takes the time to just look at Beatrice eyes, to look at the way Beatrice’s eyes seem to shine a little bit brighter with the moonlight seeping through the windows, to look at the way her long eyelashes flutter softly when she blinks. 

She must have been staring longer than normal because Beatrice’s leg gives her arm a gentle nudge and she tilts her head at Ava, “What?” She asks in a way that reminds Ava of that time Beatrice talked about coming up with Cruella de Jesus. 

Ava takes a deep breath.

“I don’t want to lose you.”

There’s a flash of something in Beatrice’s eyes but she doesn’t break their eye contact. Instead, Ava feels the bed shift as Beatrice pushes herself off the headboard, her head hovering just above Ava’s as she moves closer. 

“You don’t?” Beatrice asks quietly. 

Ava shakes her head, a small smile tugging at her lips. “Never.”

Beatrice brings one hand to Ava’s face, cupping her cheek, her thumb caressing the skin so softly like Ava might break any second. And Ava briefly thinks she actually might, because Beatrice is being so gentle with her and all Ava wants to do is to allow herself to give in, to melt in Beatrice’s hands and let her put Ava back together again. 

“Then you won’t lose me.” Beatrice says and it almost sounds like a promise, like another vow, “I’ll make sure of it.”

And usual, as is the case with Beatrice  _ always _ , Ava believes her, trusts her. 

“Good.” Ava whispers. She lifts her own hand to cover Beatrice’s and leans closer to her, presses her hands closer to her cheek. 

“Good.” Beatrice whispers back.

A calm silence settles between them again as Ava locks their fingers together. For a while, Beatrice just watches and allows Ava to play with her fingers, fiddling with them and slipping her fingers in between Beatrice’s before dislodging them and repeating the process again. It’s comforting, Ava thinks, existing in this quiet with Beatrice. It’s something she likes, something she could get used to, if they’re given the chance. 

And Ava wants that chance. She wants the chance to see the world, to eat more food, to try more things, to  _ live _ . She wants the chance to explore this thing that she has with Beatrice. And looking at Beatrice now, her beautiful, badass Beatrice, Ava feels a desire to kiss her, to pull her down and pull her close, as close as possible, and just kiss her.

God, does she want to kiss Beatrice. 

But Ava knows that it’s not the right time. Tomorrow’s mission is too important to all of them for Ava to potentially distract their greatest fighter. It’s not the right time and that’s okay. Because this will give Ava the extra push she needs to make sure that she does her best tomorrow, to make sure that they get more time, and that she and Beatrice get their chance together. 

Beatrice has always been willing to wait for her. Ava can wait a little bit more too. 

“Can I stay here tonight?” Ava asks, turning to her side to face Beatrice fully. “I don’t want to be alone.”

Beatrice nods and Ava watches as she slides down, more gracefully than how Ava did it earlier, until they’re level with each other, Beatrice also on her side facing Ava. 

The serene smile Beatrice is directing at her is one that Ava wants to fall asleep and wake up to again and again. It’s one that she wants to kiss before she falls asleep every night. She wants to whisper against those lips  _ God, I’m falling so fast and I think I love you already, I’m in love with you in so many beautiful ways _ , but for now, Ava can settle on grasping Beatrice’s hands and placing their intertwined hands between them. 

“Goodnight, Bea.” Ava squeezes Beatrice’s hand. 

Beatrice smiles softly and she rubs her thumb on the back of Ava’s hand. “Sweet dreams, Ava.”

As she drifts off to sleep, Ava thinks that if Beatrice’s face is the last thing she sees, then there are no doubts that she’ll have sweet dreams. 

  
  
  


**< 1>**

  
  


They finally made it into the tomb. 

The way was long and things got fucked up pretty fastly (because of course they do) but they made it through what with Mother Superion arriving in the most crucial time like the boss bitch that Ava always knew her to be and everybody working hard to get Beatrice and Ava down to where they needed to be. 

Now it’s just Beatrice and her, orbiting around each other with their silly little puns that almost makes Ava forget that she’s a Disaster of a Warrior Nun and Beatrice is a Badass Ninja Nun. It almost feels like they’re just them-- Ava and Beatrice, two girls trying to flirt using terrible puns. 

And it’s exhilarating, Ava thinks. Being with Beatrice, trading terrible puns with her, it’s all so nice and normal and somehow familiar. Like it’s something that Ava would get used to doing every day but still never get tired of it. 

But for them to be able to do that, they need to be able to get out of this alive and honestly, Ava is kind of scared shitless right now. It was one thing to be able to sneak into some catacombs and phase into a wall and grab and go, but it’s a completely different thing when there are murderous nuns from the Order of Satan trying to kill her.

She likes to think she’s covering it up pretty well but she has a feeling that Beatrice has an inkling anyway. Beatrice is smart after all. And Ava would be a bit offended at the plan B they apparently prepared but Beatrice  _ did  _ just risk her life for her, to get her here, and up until now Ava really has been more of a flight than fight type of person so having a back up plan (more like a back up  _ bomb _ ) is justifiable, Ava supposes. 

Beatrice always works with deadly efficiency and precision, whether it be in kicking some evil ass or measuring a huge wall like what she is doing now. Seeing Beatrice working with so much focus, even with a cut on her cheek bleeding, gives Ava some well-needed boost of courage. Ava figures that if Beatrice and everybody else can risk their life just to get Ava to the tomb, then Ava could definitely do the same for them and for all the previous warrior nuns. 

Lilith arrives and they all get into some scuffle but Mary is able to calm Lilith down. Now their time is even shorter than it originally was and Ava really needs to get in that fucking wall already. 

  
  


Standing before the huge block of stone, Ava feels her fear creep back in slowly, feels her chest closing in on itself in anxiety. “There’s not enough time to get back up and out of here.”

“Then we blow ourselves an exit if we have to.” Beatrice answers firmly, her voice devoid of any hesitation or worry. As if blowing up the Vatican just so Ava can get out of the tomb is a painfully obvious solution. And it makes Ava’s heartbeat speed up for a completely different reason. 

“We can still salvage this. Trust me.” The last part is said so fiercely and so firmly, and it’s loaded in so many ways.

Ava has not always been the smartest or most intuitive person but right now, she hears what Beatrice isn’t directly saying, she feels what Beatrice isn’t exactly telling her. Ava gets it. 

So she immediately answers, “I do.” No hesitation, no second guessing. She wills Beatrice to understand what Ava isn’t directly saying, to feel what Ava isn’t exactly telling her. 

She faces the wall again, takes a deep breath to calm her nerves. She wants to go in, knows she needs to go already. But can she really phase through 20 feet of cement without telling Beatrice how she feels? What if Beatrice didn’t understand her earlier? What if things go wrong? Things go wrong all the time. Even if Beatrice vows to get her out, what if something happens and Ava dies? There’s no fucking way she can die without letting Beatrice knows that she’s so goddamn in love with her, that she is beautiful and she loves everything about her. 

So she turns around again, faces Beatrice, looking almost frantically into her eyes, “Bea, before I go I need to tell you something. I need you to know that I--”

“Ava,” She feels Beatrice grab her hand and she stops talking. Beatrice is looking at her in  _ that  _ way again, like Ava is precious to her, like she is looking at something so important and so valuable. Beatrice shakes her head at Ava and before Ava could spiral at the gesture, Beatrice entwines their fingers together and squeezes, “Later, okay? Come back to me, and tell me later.”

Ava feels her heart swell ten times larger in the best way possible. Because Beatrice just said to come back to her, like Ava is hers and she wants Ava to  _ be  _ hers, and maybe that’s enough for now. 

So Ava grins, in that dopey way that always makes Beatrice shake her head before breaking into a smile of her own. “Okay. Wait for me.”

She doesn’t wait for Beatrice to respond, just gives her hands a tight squeeze, commits the image of her smile to memory, before letting go and surging into the wall. 

There’s no fucking way she’ll allow herself to die now. 

  
  


**< 0>**

Luckily, they were able to pull Mary out of the piles and piles of possessed tourists and they somehow managed to fight their way out and to flee. Camila drives them to what Ava hopes is a place far, far, far away from the Vatican. 

They’re all slumped in the van Camila hotwired and everyone is just quiet. Ava supposes all of them have things on their mind they’re not yet ready to discuss out loud. All the lies they’ve been fed, the entire fuckery of Adriel being alive, Duretti being pope, and Vincent’s fucking betrayal. Everyone is just tired and wounded and just so drained already. 

So they all exist in some kind of suspended silence. Camila is driving, Lilith is helping Camila navigate, Mary is folded in on herself in one corner, and Beatrice--

Beatrice is beside her, gaze trained outside the window since they got in the vehicle. Ava would think that Beatrice has probably put her walls up again if not for their locked hands resting on her lap. 

Beatrice had grabbed her in the fray when Ava was almost jumped on by a possessed Vatican guard. Beatrice had grabbed her, thrown one of her knives to impale the possessed guard’s foot on the ground, and pulled Ava with her as they followed their retreating team. 

And Beatrice has not let go of Ava’s hand since then. Not even for a second. Not when they clamored into the van, and not when she barked out instructions for Camila to drive south and avoid main roads. 

Ava knows that there are other more pressing matters to fixate on but they just narrowly escaped death and Beatrice has been holding tightly to her hand for almost an hour now and Ava decides to take whatever comfort she can get out of it. 

They stop in some sketchy-looking cheap motel where Camila gets them two rooms. She drops one of the keys in Beatrice’s free hand, gives the two of them a smile before helping Lilith support Mary as the three of them go up the stairs first. 

Ava feels a gentle tug on her hand and turns to Beatrice to see her looking questioningly at her. Ava shakes her head and pulls Beatrice along silently to the stairs. They enter their room, a tiny room with two tiny beds. The door closes behind them and for several seconds, they just stand in the middle of the room, hands clasped together. 

“Are you okay?” Ava finally asks when she can’t take the silence anymore. 

Beatrice turns to her and smiles weakly. “Yeah, I’m okay. Just really tired.”

Ava nods. “Y-yeah, I am too.”

“Do you mind if I shower first, Ava?” 

“No, go ahead. Uh, here are the clothes Camila got for us.” Ava says as she hands the bag she’s holding in her other hand. “I’ll go after you. Take your time cleaning up.”

Beatrice takes the bag and nods. “Okay.”

“Okay.”

They stay still for a beat, just staring at each other. 

“Ava?”

Ava nearly jumps. “Yes, Beatrice?”

Beatrice smiles at her, the fond smile she usually directs at Ava when she does something silly or stupid. “I’m going to need my hand.”

Ava looks at Beatrice questioningly for a moment until she feels a gentle tug on her hand. She remembers their still locked hands and she quickly lets go. “Oh, shit, sorry! Sorry, I forgot!”

“It’s okay, Ava.” Beatrice says with a small laugh. “I’ll shower now, okay?”

Ava just nods this time and gestures to the bathroom, choosing not to open her mouth lest she says something dumb again. She sits on one of the uncomfortable chairs and waits for Beatrice to finish. When she does, she gives Ava another one of her small smiles before telling her to go shower. 

And Ava follows immediately. She follows immediately because she is dirty with blood and grime and because she’s at a loss with where she and Beatrice are in terms of their…  _ thing _ . They have a conversation on hold, one that Ava very much wants to have, but they are also both just so fucking tired and drained and so much has happened that they are yet to process (like how much of a fucking fraud Vincent is). So Ava has absolutely no clue where to go from where she is now and so she takes a shower instead. 

When she gets out of the bathroom, Beatrice is sitting on one of the beds. Their eyes meet instantly. 

“Hi,” Beatrice says with a gentle smile. 

Ava smiles back. “Hey.”

“Crazy mission, isn’t it?”

Ava grins. “Yeah,” Then her grin mellows into a small smile as she remembers the events from earlier. She focuses on one event in particular. 

“You blew up the Vatican for me.” Ava whispers softly. 

Beatrice blinks at the sudden statement and doesn’t answer. 

“You blew up the Vatican,” Ava takes a step forward and repeats slowly, like the information is also just sinking into her. “For me.”

“Technically, I only intended to blow up Adirel’s tomb but,” Beatrice clarifies consciously with an almost embarrassed expression. She tilts her head at Ava, her gaze softening, “But yes. For you. I did it for you.”

“So I can come back to you.” Another step. 

Beatrice nods. “I did tell you to come back to me.”

“You did,” Ava confirms. Another step. “And I did. Come back to you, that is.” Ava knows she’s talking in short incomplete phrases, like some child, but somehow, as she takes another step forward, she can’t find herself to care. Not when Beatrice is looking so softly and so fondly at her, like she knows exactly what she’s doing to Ava right now. 

“Yes, you did. Because you have something to tell me.”

“I do.” Ava nods and takes another step forward, which brings her right in front of Beatrice. 

Beatrice tilts her head back a bit to look up at Ava. “Want to tell me now?”

Ava looks at Beatrice unsurely. “Do you want me to?” She recalls how weirdly Beatrice has been acting. “You seem tired. A bit off. We don’t have to rush into this, Beatrice. We can rest and wait for tomorrow or until you’re feeling a bit better. Today is crappy, after all, and we’ve all had a crappy day and I’m sure you have a lot in your mind also and—“

Suddenly, Beatrice’s hand is grasping hers, effectively ending her impromptu rambling. 

“Ava. I was tired— still tired. And yes, today has been terrible but,” Beatrice takes a deep breath before continuing. “I’ve been waiting for this for a long while now.”

“You have?” That makes Ava’s heart hammer in her chest. 

Beatrice nods and she pulls on Ava’s hand to make her sit down in front of her. “You can tell me now, Ava.”

Ava smiles at Beatrice. Here they are, Ava thinks, she can finally tell Beatrice all the things she wants to tell her. About how Ava is just completely helpless when it comes to Beatrice, about how Ava thinks that Beatrice already had her the moment she called Ava a bitch— they just both didn’t know it yet back then. About how even though it is cheesy as hell, every single fucking thing that Beatrice does is utterly beautiful. About how Ava has fallen so fast, so deeply, and so willingly into Beatrice and how she never wants to be anywhere else. 

There’s  _ so _ much Ava wants to tell Beatrice. 

Ava thinks she knows just where to start.

“I love you.” Ava says simply, because it really is as simple as that. She loves Beatrice— loves her so much that it makes her head spin. 

Beatrice’s lips stretch into a beautiful smile. She almost looks excited. “I love you, too.”

That surprises Ava a bit. She knows that Beatrice reciprocates her feelings to some degree but she also knows of Beatrice’s trauma and her struggles so she came into this without expecting Beatrice to state her feelings as explicitly like that. 

Ava holds both of Beatrice’s hands in her own. “You don’t have to say it just because I did, Beatrice. I—“

“Shut up.” Beatrice cuts her off with a shake of her head and a smile of mild amusement. “I said I love you, too, Ava.”

“I heard you.” Ava laughs. “I’m just saying that—“

This time, Ava gets cut off by a finger pressed to her lips. 

“Ava, please.” Beatrice says with a laugh. “ _ I’m _ saying that I love you. I love you and I know there are things to consider, things to discuss, but—“ Beatrice moves her hand to cup Ava’s cheek, her thumb caressing the skin under it. It’s very reminiscent of when Beatrice caught her during phasing training in ArqTech and Ava practically swoons. 

“—But right now, I love you and you love me—“

“I do.” Ava interjects, just to see the fondly exasperated look on Beatrice's face again.  _ God, Ava loves that look so much.  _

“Yes, thank you,” Beatrice laughs. “As I was saying, right now, there’s only one thing I really want.”

Ava knows what it is but she’s nothing if not a cheeky little brat (Mary’s exact words). And so she asks Beatrice, “And what is that?”

“For you to kiss me.”

“Well, that can be arranged.” Ava grins.

Beatrice shakes her head, “I swear, Ava, if you don’t kiss me right now—”

Ava cuts her off again, surging forward to capture Beatrice’s lips with her own. And based on the way Beatrice’s hand moves to the back of Ava’s neck to pull Ava closer, she thinks Beatrice does not mind it at all. 

  
//  
  


**Author's Note:**

> Who else here knows they’re being overly dramatic but still feels like they’ll die waiting for Warrior Nun S2 anyway???? I miss my favorite nuns and reluctant dumbass hero.


End file.
